Prince Bernhard, Princess Annette and Family, Current Events Part 2 (August 2008 -)

[Somebody]

Holland a beautiful Country,but not just Tulips Waterway's and bicycles. It has the same problems as the rest of the world has. Space for Homes people can afford and raise their children in a safe way,without fear that they need to find a space somewhere on a street corner, because they cant afford to pay rent. This sadness is shared with the rest of the world. Because the mighty BUCK if EURO or DOLLAR is way more important then ones fellow man. Sad but true.

Finding affordable housing in the cities in the Netherlands indeed isn't easy (nor has been easy - long waiting lists have existed for decades). The Netherlands is a small country with lots of inhabitants. In addition, Amsterdam has the problem of lots of expats either living there or international investors buying up the available houses/apartments.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Holland a beautiful Country,but not just Tulips Waterway's and bicycles. It has the same problems as the rest of the world has. Space for Homes people can afford and raise their children in a safe way,without fear that they need to find a space somewhere on a street corner, because they cant afford to pay rent. This sadness is shared with the rest of the world. Because the mighty BUCK if EURO or DOLLAR is way more important then ones fellow man. Sad but true.

Bernhard van Vollenhoven is actually creating living accomodations. His company mainly transforms former huge office complexes or former commercial or industrial sites to residential lofts and appartments, so he is not taking away housing, he is adding hundreds of housing opportunities to the market.

But the rents for appartments in Amsterdam are almost out of reach for single Amsterdamers with a normal income. But that is not really Bernhard's fault. The social housing corporations, once established to provide affordable housing, have sold so many properties and invest in new projects for the same market as Bernhard: the medium and higher end.

So the lower end of the market is not served by the housing corporations, with this neglecting their core business. But the King's cousin Bernhard van Vollenhoven, a self-made millionaire in the Amsterdam housing market, indeed is an ideal focus for criticism, even when that criticism is actually not very factual.

 

[Marengo]

Prince Bernhard is not happy with the party programme of the Labour party (PvdA). The party programme speaks of a 'prince Bernhard tax', in which they propose that people who rent out 5 properties or more should pay income tax over the rent that is paid by their tennants.

Int he Telegraaf the prince says 'I think it is strange that a political party is using my name'. A business partner of the prince has sent angry emails to the Labour party, in which he speaks of 'populist opportunism' and of the use of a 'demonizing' set of vocabulary.

A parlementarian from the Labour party says that the party is free to use any term they find appropriate.

https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/prins-bernhard-belasting-van-pvda-valt-verkeerd-bij-bernhard~a9389169/

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Interesting. It says something about perceptions of the monarchy if a major political party believes it will gain an advantage by politicizing the name of a royal family member (in a negative manner).

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Interesting. It says something about perceptions of the monarchy if a major political party believes it will gain an advantage by politicizing the name of a royal family member (in a negative manner).

It is not so much about the monarchy but about Bernhard van Vollenhoven who owns 600 houses. In my perception the Dutch are very well able to differentiate. For an example, Bernhard's mother Princess Margriet is never ever linked to her multi-millionaire son.

But he is an example of someone for whom the princely title "prins van Oranje-Nassau" (ad personam) is a burden: he is the ideal scapegoat because he gives a name and a face to thousands and thousands of anonymous property owners and real estate developers.

That Queen Juliana gave the sons of Princess Margriet a princely title was -by hindsight- not the best arrangement. As a plain Mr Van Vollenhoven, like his Guillermo cousins, he would have been far more anonymous. No one knows the face of Bernardo or Nicolas Guillermo, let alone that they are family of the King. But "prins Bernhard van Oranje-Nassau" immediately lays the link to the Royal House.

 

[Somebody]

I agree. I'd say it is very inappropriate to misuse his name for political gain even though he might be the most famous 'huisjesmelker' that doesn't mean he is the worst.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

I have never heard about Bernhard van Vollenhoven having a poor reputation as owner of properties an sich. It must be said that he never does business with renters: it all goes via all-in-serviced housing agencies.

But he is a name and a face for the gentrification of once folksy and habitable neighbourhoods to be changed in posh streets full of expats bringing their kids to International School and without any link to locals or the local community.

The fabric of neighbourhoods breaks and Zijne Hoogheid with his impossible to overlook mega-spectacles is THE immediately recognizable face of the problem: https://i2.wp.com/indignatie.nl/wp-...rt-terugkeert.jpg?zoom=2&resize=450,300&ssl=1

 

[Marengo]

Prince Bernhard has received a COVID vaccin today in the Amsterdam UMC.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1376835687522111489

 

[Somebody]

Prince Bernhard has received a COVID vaccin today in the Amsterdam UMC.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1376835687522111489

It's the hospital that 'advertised' him getting his vaccine in an attempt to encourage others to also get their vaccine when it's their turn. He received a call because he is in a high risk category - I assume as survivor of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma; and probably him having Crohn disease also adds to being in the high risk category.

 

[REAL COUNTESS]

I am glad he is taking care of himself. He is in the high risk category. The only problem I am having is why does it take a member of a RF or some celebrity to let the people know to get vaccinated to stay healthy. I feel it should be in the peoples own interest to do so.

 

[Somebody]

This Thursday a new book on the prince (Business prince) will be published. The authors talked to lots of people near him but the royal family did not cooperate. According to this book, the prince has an excellent feeling for timing (as evidenced by getting into internet and later on real estate - and probably now racing - at the right moment), is creative and willing to take risk. For him it is all about the reward at the end and he isn't that careful (or principled) in whom he does business with.

Read: Article (in Dutch) by NOS.

 

[Marengo]

One of the risks is apparently working with corrupt business partners in Serbia - including the mayor of Belgrade- according to the authors.

Yesterday one of the authors -Michiel Couzy- was talking about his book on the chat show Op1 with (Count) Sander Schimmelpennick.

https://www.npostart.nl/op1/30-03-2021/POW_04917717 at minute 50.

The prince refused to cooporate with the authors. Couzy has written several articles for newspaper Het Parool about the prince, mostly focussing on the prince's real estate portfolio in Amsterdam. They called him 'a prince with a disastrous image' and he does very little to correct that image. Schimmelpenninck says that the prince is like other business men of that generation that grew up in the 1980s with the idea 'greed is good'. Schimmelpenninck and Couzy both urged the prince to give more clarity about his business dealings.

In the programme the prince was defended by a member of parlament - named Wyben van Haga- from the FvD, an extreme-right party of Covid-deniers and anti-semites. Van Haga was involved with a scandal involving real estate in Amsterdam which led to him be kicked out of the Liberal Party of the Prime minister a few years ago, after which he radicalized and joined the FvD.

--
During the attack on the Royal Family in 2009 Prince Bernhard was absent due to an illness. According to the authors, if the killer had succeeded in his attack it would have meant that Bernhard would have been prince regent until Amalia's 18th birthday. According to the authors the prince sometimes makes a joke about it to intimi: 'Can you imagine? I was almost called to something higher!'.

Apparently the prince has been sending whatsapp messages to the authors of this book, filled with a list of reproaches. He is claimed to have written: 'I assure you: Willem-Alexander is not amused'.

https://royalinsider.nl/prins-bernhard-jr-dacht-even-nederland-te-moeten-regeren/?utm_source=dlvr.it

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Have any other members of the family since Prince Bernhard senior been so polarizing on the basis of their commercial activities? The degree of controversy seems unusual for a minor member of a European royal family.

 

[An Ard Ri]

How is Prince Bernhard's health?

 

[Marengo]

Supposedly his health is fine -though he does have the Crohn's disease which is chronical - but he is in a high-risk catagory for the rest of his life probably, which is why he was vaccinated before most other people.

Have any other members of the family since Prince Bernhard senior been so polarizing on the basis of their commercial activities? The degree of controversy seems unusual for a minor member of a European royal family.

No, it has never been a problem for anybody else. Neither was it for Bernhard before he started to get involved in real estate. Now he has become the symbol for everything that is wrong with the rather tight and over-heated housing market in Amsterdam and in much of the rest of the country. An issue that affects many people directly, so some of them will have rather strong opinions about it.

The only cousin that caused scandal was princess Margarita of Parma & her first husband, but that was far more serious due to their accusations involving the government and royal family. Among other things they accused the RF of trying to ruin his business. Their interviews show some parallels with the present situation in the UK with the duke and duchess of Sussex.

 

[An Ard Ri]

Probably not the best idea sending whatsapp messages to the authors!

 

[maria-olivia]

Marengo is tat true that he is the owner of 300 houses in Amsterdam ?

 

[Skippy]

Probably not the best idea sending whatsapp messages to the authors!

I agree, it sounds a bit condescending and intimidating also.

 

[An Ard Ri]

I agree, it sounds a bit condescending and intimidating also.

Exactly what I was thinking and also involving the king too.

 

[Marengo]

Marengo is tat true that he is the owner of 300 houses in Amsterdam ?

According to Mr. Couzy of Het Parool newspaper the prince has 590 adresses on his name. A spokesperson of the prince claims that the prince is only one of four owners of these properties (I suppose his company has 3 other business partners) and that the prince himself only has 25,5 properties on his own name.

Note that the prince and his company bought several former office buildings that they are converting into a high number of appartments, among them the rather large former ING office in the Westerpark & plans to construct new buildings on this site and the former CBS headquarters on Bickerseiland. I assume this may partly explain a high number of adresses that is owned by the company. And considering the state these buildings were in [I worked in one of them so I saw it first hand] I am not quite sure it is a bad thing that they are investing money into converting these buildings. Sadly for many these new appartments will not be affordable for those with an avarage salary as they are aiming for a higher segment to make the projects as profitable as possible.

Were he not related to the royal family I am quite sure his ownership of these properties would never have featured in the national -or even in the local- news btw. As it is he is the ideal villain for those who are frustrated with the housing crisis that many parts of the country is in. I am not sure if it is completely fair to blame the prince for all that is wrong. He is simply doing what the market and laws are allowing him to do, with little regard for societal implications perhaps. Decades of decreased public spending, liberalisation of the housing market, deregulation and big delays in the construction of affordable housing is the main issue, but that is a more complicated story than just to blame a prince.

In 2020 his private wealth was valued by some magazines at 80 million Euros. But I have no idea how they reached that conclusion.

----
As to the whatsapp messages: there were reproaches in a whatsapp exchange. The authors tried to get in touch with the prince and to let him clarify his part of the story - I suppose that is why the conversation started. The part about Willem-Alexander was supposedly said in a private conversation with one of the authors.

 

[eya]

Prince Bernhard with his son Samuel at Circuit Zandvoort, yesterday

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRdrgGXFr6A/

 

[Marengo]

Prince Bernhard has asked artists to perform for free on the racing circuit of Zandvoort, says Joshua Nolet - of the music group Chef's Special- on instagram.Nolet also wondered why the government is against open air concerts while big sport events - such as the race in Zandvoort- can still go ahead.

Singer Davina Michelle will sing for free during the race of the -very rich- prince. And a performance of the orchestra of the royal airforce will also be for free.

Reactions from other artists and journalists have been acid. The prince does not have a good reputation and was called proletenprins, huisjesmelker (milker of houses), profiteur, parasiet and people remarked that he was passed having any shame.

https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/entertainm...rins-bernhard-vanwege-gratis-optredens-bij-gp

Wouke van Scherreburg -former political reporter of the public news channel- stated that lack of payment is not uncommon for the royal family. Carel Krayenhof - the Bandoleon player at Máxima's wedding did not receive a penny either, The exposure being enough reward perhaps.

-
At the same time the Prince is asking for millions of cash from the government to help out his racing circuit. Due to COVID less spectators are expected to attend. Socialism for the rich and capitalism for the rest seems to be the motto.

https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/economie/b...-race-zandvoort-miljoenenverlies-toeschouwers

 

[Somebody]

Some more on this negative news story about prince Bernhard with direct links to the 'rant' by Joshua Nolet (for those understaning Dutch). According to the lead singer of the band Chef'Special he was asked, in the name of prince Bernhard (who is one of the owners of the Zandvoort Circuit), if his band could play FOR FREE at the Formula 1 race next month, but they refused stating that it's not just them that are hurting (financially) but especially the sound and lighting technicians and everyone else that works behind the scenes.

His 'rant' (as he called it himself) was picked up by the NOS who wrote 2 news stories about it:
Organization asked Chef'Special to play for free at the Formula 1
Request for free concert at Formula 1 anti-social and indecent

As Marengo explained, part of the backstory is that while all festivals have been cancelled until September 20 because of Covid, the Formula 1 can go ahead (by some weird interpretation of the rules) with 70.000 people and football stadiums are filled up again. The cultural sector is not amused and organized a huge protest last weekend but to no avail (i.e., no reaction at all from 'The Hague'/the government)

The 'Dutch Grand Prix' responded and said they indeed sent that email and call it a 'barterdeal'. The artists will receive VIP-tickets and direct costs will be reimbursed.

Prince Bernhard with his son Samuel at Circuit Zandvoort, yesterday

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRdrgGXFr6A/

Looks like Samuel is also racing. I guess that's how it works if your father owns the circuit and has money to spend on these kinds of hobbies.

And women are still there to look beautiful and fawn over the men with/in race cars?

 

[Marengo]

Yes, I had the same thought. I thought to have read that they ended this custom for the grand prix but apparently not. Maybe I was mixing it up with the tour de France.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

The hypocrite thing is that talkshows go into this but remain silent that sometimes artists even have to PAY for performing in their tv-shows... In the end an organizator can ask what he/she wants and an artist can say yes or no.

In the meantime the frontman of Chef's Special stated it was not directly aimed at Bernhard but the King's cousin was successfully used as a vehicle to ram this phenomenon (artists expected to perform for a meagre reward) to attention. The real anger seems to be that neither from the Cabinet nor from the Parliament there was any reaction on the protests by the entertainment sector.

This whole episode again underlines how wrong it was by Queen Juliana to insist that the Van Vollenhovens are prins van Oranje-Nassau. Every action is a direct link to the monarchy even though Bernhard is no member of the Royal House and no successor to the throne.

When he wins a civil case against opponents of the Formula 1 Grand Prix, it is because he is prins Bernhard van Oranje in the eye of many. If there is something with his 400 real estate objects then it is prins Bernhard van Oranje who did it and hoppa... again a link to the monarchy.

It was better when it were the Van Vollenhovens like the Guillermos and the Parmas. The cousins from the last two families are as related to the King as Bernhard but are no Van Oranje and this automatically creates an optical distance to the Royal House.

This thread is called Prince Bernhard, Princess Annette and Family it already reads completely different from the Van Vollenhoven family which would generate a fraction of interest while the situation was similar.

That is also why I have doubts with the Van Oranje-Nassau van Amsberg surname for the children of Friso and Constantijn. Eloïse is widely known as Eloïse van Oranje which optically equals her to her cousin Princess Amalia. It was better to use the surname Van Lippe-Biesterfeld van Amsberg because now it is Eloïse van Oranje here and Eloïse van Oranje there. A potential second pain in the royal ass alike Bernhard van Oranje now.

 

[Somebody]

According to talkshow host Humberto Tan (who invited the lead singer that created this media storm to his show), he spoke to prince Bernhard and the prince is sorry that the request was made and now says it should never have been sent.

Source

 

[Marengo]

It has been raining opinion articles on Prince Bernhard in the weekend editions of the Dutch newspapers last saturday.

In the Algemeen Dagblad the author Saskia Noort gives us an overview of all the recent scandals around the prince. From rules that were bended in his favor -due to him being a prince she thinks- milking the scarcity of housing in Amsterdam and buying one of the most expensive villas in Ibiza. She places his business dealings in the general issue of the broken housing market, of which the prince has become the primary symbol.

She adds that the prince claims to be suffering and says that he is unfairly treated because he is a prince. And she dubs him 'prince poen'.

https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/pandje...len-waar-heeft-hij-het-aan-verdiend~a5965fb9/

In the Volkskrant Teun van der Keuken names the Grand Prix 'the most decadent party ever held in this country' and a middle finger from the rich to the rest of us.

https://www.volkskrant.nl/columns-o...voort-is-middelvinger-van-de-rijken~b4dda8f3/

In the NRC Marcel van Roosmalen claims in the NRC that the only reason the Grand Prix was allowed to be held in Zandvoort was due to the status of the prince. 'He is the anti-social incarnate, the man who, because of his birth, seems better able to find the loopholes'.

https://archive.is/NWOJS#selection-1555.274-1555.476

This article about the 'moral minefields' in the business carreer of the prince was published again.

https://www.parool.nl/nederland/de-...bernhard-is-vol-morele-mijnenvelden~b61c2304/

In the television programme Veronica Inside, television personality Johan Derksen called the prince an emetic (a medicine that causes vomiting).

Etc. etc.
-

-
As a result of the commotion the DJ's will all be paid, other singers have been cancelled while Davina Michelle will sing the national anthem at the Grand Prix.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

It has been raining opinion articles on Prince Bernhard in the weekend editions of the Dutch newspapers last saturday.

In the Algemeen Dagblad the author Saskia Noort gives us an overview of all the recent scandals around the prince. From rules that were bended in his favor -due to him being a prince she thinks- milking the scarcity of housing in Amsterdam and buying one of the most expensive villas in Ibiza. She places his business dealings in the general issue of the broken housing market, of which the prince has become the primary symbol.

She adds that the prince claims to be suffering and says that he is unfairly treated because he is a prince. And she dubs him 'prince poen'.

https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/pandje...len-waar-heeft-hij-het-aan-verdiend~a5965fb9/

In the Volkskrant Teun van der Keuken names the Grand Prix 'the most decadent party ever held in this country' and a middle finger from the rich to the rest of us.

https://www.volkskrant.nl/columns-o...voort-is-middelvinger-van-de-rijken~b4dda8f3/

In the NRC Marcel van Roosmalen claims in the NRC that the only reason the Grand Prix was allowed to be held in Zandvoort was due to the status of the prince. 'He is the anti-social incarnate, the man who, because of his birth, seems better able to find the loopholes'.

https://archive.is/NWOJS#selection-1555.274-1555.476

This article about the 'moral minefields' in the business carreer of the prince was published again.

https://www.parool.nl/nederland/de-...bernhard-is-vol-morele-mijnenvelden~b61c2304/

In the television programme Veronica Inside, television personality Johan Derksen called the prince an emetic (a medicine that causes vomiting).

Etc. etc.
-

-
As a result of the commotion the DJ's will all be paid, other singers have been cancelled while Davina Michelle will sing the national anthem at the Grand Prix.

But you conveniently omitted something Marcel van Roosmalen also wrote in the NRC: "Bernhard is enough Orange to know what the people want" and that is undoubtedly true.

While a part of the us-knows-us vomits on Bernhard, this weekend a gigantic mass of people travels to Bernhard's circuit for the Dutch Grand Prix Formula One.

The ladies and gentlemen "TV personalities" criticizing Bernhard often did this from studios on the Media Park, owned by... ?

And the old gentleman Johan Derksen whom called Bernhard a vomit stimulating drug has a double tongue as he was firmly advocating the case for a Formula One on the TT-circuit in his home province Assen. The TT-circuit lost the bid and Bernhard won it, "Just because he is a so-called prince" to the sour opinion of Mr Derksen.

To paraphrase Liberace: "Bernhard is crying, all the way to the bank".

 

[eya]

Prince Bernhard on the Zandvoort circuit today


https://www.anpfoto.nl/search.pp?eventid=6032400

 

[lucien]

One of the risks is apparently working with corrupt business partners in Serbia - including the mayor of Belgrade- according to the authors.

Yesterday one of the authors -Michiel Couzy- was talking about his book on the chat show Op1 with (Count) Sander Schimmelpennick.

https://www.npostart.nl/op1/30-03-2021/POW_04917717 at minute 50.

The prince refused to cooporate with the authors. Couzy has written several articles for newspaper Het Parool about the prince, mostly focussing on the prince's real estate portfolio in Amsterdam. They called him 'a prince with a disastrous image' and he does very little to correct that image. Schimmelpenninck says that the prince is like other business men of that generation that grew up in the 1980s with the idea 'greed is good'. Schimmelpenninck and Couzy both urged the prince to give more clarity about his business dealings.

In the programme the prince was defended by a member of parlament - named Wyben van Haga- from the FvD, an extreme-right party of Covid-deniers and anti-semites. Van Haga was involved with a scandal involving real estate in Amsterdam which led to him be kicked out of the Liberal Party of the Prime minister a few years ago, after which he radicalized and joined the FvD.

--
During the attack on the Royal Family in 2009 Prince Bernhard was absent due to an illness. According to the authors, if the killer had succeeded in his attack it would have meant that Bernhard would have been prince regent until Amalia's 18th birthday. According to the authors the prince sometimes makes a joke about it to intimi: 'Can you imagine? I was almost called to something higher!'.

Apparently the prince has been sending whatsapp messages to the authors of this book, filled with a list of reproaches. He is claimed to have written: 'I assure you: Willem-Alexander is not amused'.

https://royalinsider.nl/prins-bernhard-jr-dacht-even-nederland-te-moeten-regeren/?utm_source=dlvr.it

Couzy and Schimmelpenninck...poison in one sentence...awfull kids!